Abstract
This paper examines the transformation of traditional Turkish desserts into contemporary industrial food products through the framework of transformational design. Grounded in the premise that food functions not only as a biological necessity but also as a carrier of cultural memory, identity, and social meaning, the study explores how traditional foods can be reinterpreted within modern production systems, consumption patterns, and sustainability expectations. Drawing on student projects from a food design course in an industrial design department during the 2024–2025 academic year, the research analyzes how desserts are redesigned according to industrial constraints and contemporary lifestyles. Using thematic analysis, findings show that each product reflects cultural, systemic, and behavioral transformations, confirming the interconnected nature of transformational design. The results support the concept of food’s “transformative nature” (Daou & Sarantou, 2025), demonstrating its role in reshaping identity and social interaction. The study contributes to discussions on cultural sustainability, food design and industrial design.
Keywords
food design; transformational design; cultural sustainability; identity; heritage
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1301
Citation
Torum, B. (2026) The Transformative Nature of Food and the Transition of Traditional Desserts into Industrial Products: A Case Study Through a Transformational Design Lens, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1301
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Included in
The Transformative Nature of Food and the Transition of Traditional Desserts into Industrial Products: A Case Study Through a Transformational Design Lens
This paper examines the transformation of traditional Turkish desserts into contemporary industrial food products through the framework of transformational design. Grounded in the premise that food functions not only as a biological necessity but also as a carrier of cultural memory, identity, and social meaning, the study explores how traditional foods can be reinterpreted within modern production systems, consumption patterns, and sustainability expectations. Drawing on student projects from a food design course in an industrial design department during the 2024–2025 academic year, the research analyzes how desserts are redesigned according to industrial constraints and contemporary lifestyles. Using thematic analysis, findings show that each product reflects cultural, systemic, and behavioral transformations, confirming the interconnected nature of transformational design. The results support the concept of food’s “transformative nature” (Daou & Sarantou, 2025), demonstrating its role in reshaping identity and social interaction. The study contributes to discussions on cultural sustainability, food design and industrial design.